Objective
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, an accepted rescue therapy for refractory cardiopulmonary failure, requires a complex multidisciplinary approach and advanced technology. Little is known about the relationship between a center’s case volume and patient mortality. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between hospital extracorporeal membrane oxygenation annual volume and in-hospital mortality and assess if a minimum hospital volume could be recommended.
Design
Retrospective cohort study
Setting
A retrospective cohort admitted to children’s hospitals in the Pediatric Health Information System database from 2004-2011 supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation was identified. Indications were assigned based on patient age (neonatal vs. pediatric), diagnosis, and procedure codes. Average hospital annual volume was defined as 0-19, 20-49, or ≥50 cases per year. Maximum likelihood estimates were used to assess minimum annual case volume.
Patients
A total of 7322 pediatric patients aged 0-18 years of age were supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and had an indication assigned.
Interventions
None
Measurements and Main Results
Average hospital extracorporeal membrane oxygenation volume ranged from 1-58 cases per year. Overall mortality was 43% but differed significantly by indication. After adjustment for case-mix, complexity of cardiac surgery, and year of treatment, patients treated at medium (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.75-0.98) and high (OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.63-0.89) volume centers had significantly lower odds of death compared to those treated at low volume centers. The minimum annual case load most significantly associated with lower mortality was 22 (95% CI 22-28).
Conclusion
Pediatric centers with low extracorporeal membrane oxygenation average annual case volume had significantly higher mortality and a minimum volume of 22 cases per year was associated with improved mortality. We suggest this threshold be evaluated by additional study.
Background
The use of regional anesthesia (RA) in pediatric patients remains understudied, although evidence suggests benefits over general anesthesia.
Questions/Purposes
We sought to identify factors associated with RA use in patients under the age of 21 years undergoing ambulatory orthopedic surgery.
Methods
Patients under the age of 21 who underwent anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) repair or reconstruction, knee arthroscopy (KA), or shoulder arthroscopy (SA) were identified from the NY Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) database (2005–2015). Frequencies of RA use (defined by femoral nerve block, spinal, epidural, caudal, or brachial plexus anesthesia) were calculated. Multivariable regression analysis identified patient- and healthcare system–related factors associated with the use of RA. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were reported.
Results
We identified 87,273 patients who underwent the procedures of interest (ACL n = 28,226; SA n = 18,155; KA n = 40,892). In our primary analysis, 14.4% (n = 1404) had RA as their primary anesthetic; this percentage increased for patients who had ACL or KA. When adjusting for covariates, Hispanic ethnicity (OR 0.78; CI 0.65–0.94) and Medicaid insurance (OR 0.75; CI 0.65–0.87) were associated with decreased odds for the provision of RA. Further, we identified increasing age (OR 1.10; CI 1.08–1.11), ACL versus SA (OR 1.91; CI 1.74–2.10), and sports injuries (OR 1.20; CI 1.10–1.31) as factors associated with increased odds of RA use.
Conclusion
In this analysis, RA was used in a minority of patients under the age of 21 undergoing ambulatory orthopedic surgery. Older age was associated with increased use while Hispanic ethnicity and lower socioeconomic status were associated with lower use.
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